A special congratulations this month to Voorheesville Elementary School on being named as an Exemplary High Performing Blue Ribbon School by the United States Department of Education! Only 337 public and private schools across the country were recognized out of nearly 100,000 K-12 schools nationwide. Voorheesville joins 16 other schools across New York State in receiving this honor.

Pine Hollow Arboretum. Join the Pine Hollow Arboretum on Sunday, October 5 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. for a Seed Collection Workshop. Discussion topics will include information about seed collecting, processing, storage, and propagation. The event will take place at the Visitors Center located at 16 Maple Avenue in Slingerlands.

Family Heritage Day. The New York State Archives will be hosting Family Heritage Day on Saturday, October 11 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The day will consist of a full day of programs and activities for parents, children, families and all of those who have an interest in exploring their personal family heritage. For more information, visit here.

Delmar Farmers Market, rain or shine. Saturday was a wonderful day to stop by the Delmar Farmers Market, which will run outside through the end of October before moving into Bethlehem Middle School in November. The farmers market features local, organic and natural farm products, baked goods, local and fair trade crafts, and music. All of their vendors come from within 35 miles of Delmar. For more information, visit their Web site.

New Restaurant opens in Albany’s Center Square neighborhood. I was pleased to have joined fellow local officials in celebrating the opening of the Grille at 138, located at 138 Washington Avenue. Kudos to proprietor Bonnie Kohl and best of luck.

Growth in Albany’s Warehouse District. Congressman Paul Tonko, Albany Common Councilmember Kelly Kimbrough, and I toured Nine Pin Ciderworks, based out of the city’s warehouse district and holds the distinction of being the first farm cidery in the state. Their growing production facility of farm-based hard cider, coupled of creating new jobs for recent graduates, is to be commended. For more information, visit their Web site.

Job Opportunities: New York State has setup a new job portal entitled Jobs Express, where thousands of private and public sector jobs are listed. Visit jobs.ny.gov for more information on how to apply for these opportunities.

As always, for the latest about my office’s happenings or for upcoming events, please visit my office online, on Facebook, on Twitter, or my Times Union blog. If you would like to reach my office, please feel free to send us a note.

Sincerely ---

Pat